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Berklee announces winners of Master’s scholarships in Scoring for Film, TV and Video Games

July 23, 2012

Berklee College of Music in Valencia today announces the winners of The Alberto Iglesias Scholarship and The Howard Shore Scholarship for its new master’s degree program in Scoring for Film, TV and Video Games. The program will be launched at its new International campus in Valencia in September 2012. Irish born pianist and composer, Amie Doherty has been awarded The Howard Shore Scholarship and Álvaro Domínguez Vázquez from Sevilla, Spain, also a pianist and composer, has won The Alberto Iglesias Scholarship.

The winners were announced at an event held during The Sixth International Festival of Music and Cinema of Tenerife (FIMUCITÉ). The event was attended by Cristobal de la Rosa, Director of the Tenerife Town Council, Diego Navarro, Director of Orchestra, musical composer for cinema and the head of FIMUCITÉ, and key members of Berklee in Valencia, such as Brian Cole, Dean of Berklee in Valencia.

“It seemed appropriate to choose the setting of FIMUCITE, a leading film industry festival, for the awarding of the Scoring in Film, TV and Video Gaming scholarships,” explained Cole. “Scholarships have always been integral to Berklee College of Music’s offerings: they enable us to remain the leading college of contemporary music worldwide by ensuring that the most gifted musicians from all over the world have the means to attend.”

“The selection process has been challenging, not only for the scholarship awards, but also for awarding the 20 places in this highly sought after master’s program,” commented Hill. “Both Amie and Álvaro are highly deserving of their scholarships, having shown passion and dedication to music scoring and excellence in their careers to date. I look forward to welcoming them to the program.”

The Howard Shore Scholarship

Composer and pianist, Amie Doherty, aged 24, from Galway in Ireland has been awarded the Howard Shore Scholarship for 2012. A piano student from the age of four, Doherty’s love of film scoring was sparked by many classical film scores. At 16, she became an associate of the Victoria College of Music in London, gaining a piano performance diploma. She then majored in music technology at the University of Dublin, Trinity College, where she graduated in 2009. She then completed a summer internship with composer George Shaw in Los Angeles, US, before returning to the UK, working with composer Samuel Sim on the short film “Flak” and 5-part BBC drama “The Deep.” Doherty also composed music for short films in London and Chicago.

When Doherty learned she won the scholarship, she said, "I'm thrilled, honored, and extremely grateful. Howard Shore is an inspiration not only to me, but to composers worldwide, and to be awarded this scholarship is truly a great privilege."

Howard Shore is one of today’s most respected, honored, and active composers and music conductors. He is a three-time Academy Award winner – for his work scoring The Lord of the Rings trilogy – and nominee this year for Hugo. He has also won four Grammy Awards, three Golden Globes, and three Genie Awards. His vast experience spans television, film and opera, and his music has been performed at concerts throughout the world, many of which he has conducted. Shore is a Berklee alumnus who holds Honorary Doctorates from Berklee and York University, and is an Officer of the French Order of Arts and Letters.

Commenting on Doherty’s selection, Shore said: “Her music has a great sense of adventure and lyricism. She has a unique voice and will be a wonderful first recipient of the scholarship at Berklee’s campus in Valencia.”

The Alberto Iglesias Scholarship

Álvaro Domínguez Vázquez, a 25 year-old pianist and composer from Sevilla, Spain, has been awarded The Alberto Iglesias Scholarship for 2012. A passionate musician, he began studying piano at 8 and his creative flare soon progressed to composition. He studied with Juan Olaya at the CPM (Cristóbal de Morales) and participated in the production of his first audiovisual composition: “Crisálida” at 16. He is a graduate of Conservatorio Superior de Música "Manuel Castillo" of Sevilla, where he studied piano and composition simultaneously, specializing in piano, giving concerts in place such as the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. Dominguez-Vazquez has taken numerous master-classes and workshops in both piano performance and audio-visual composition and has participated in musical productions and composed and interpreted music for theatre, short films and cinema in Spain and Brussels

"It is an honor and a dream come true,” said Alvarez. “Alberto Iglesias is one of my top references and masters to follow in the film music world. I feel lucky and very grateful for the trust and support placed in me by Berklee. They saw the impulse that I feel and I want to develop, which from the beginning they wanted to support.”

Alberto Iglesias is Spain’s most acclaimed composer. Renowned for his film compositions working with directors such as Oliver Stone, Pedro Almodóvar, and John Malkovich, Iglesias is also a scholar with classical training that includes piano, guitar, composition and counterpoint, as well as electronic music studies. He is the recipient of ten Goyas, the Hollywood Film Composer Award, and numerous European accolades, as well as a number of Academy Awards nominations, most recently for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

“Berklee in Valencia is giving Álvaro a wonderful opportunity to develop his talent. Colleges allow you to develop your technical skills, which are very important to writing great music, and also to develop your spirit and hunger for knowledge. I hope that his will to explore will always be present and that he is true to his spontaneity,” commented Iglesias.

Both scholars will join the 18 other successful applicants in the intensive one-year master’s degree program in Scoring for Film, Television and Video Games, launching on September 5, 2012 at the new international Berklee College of Music campus in Valencia. This master’s program focuses on the very complete and complex art and craft of composing, orchestrating, editing and producing music for the screen.